Homemade & Commercial

Wine, Beer, Spirits, Cider & Mead Guides

Alcoholic beverages; most commonly beer and wines made at home. Brews made from brewing kits purchased at shops specialized in spirits. The Beer Pirate features homebrew recipes, equipment requirements, and commercial productions information; and all the best practices needed to make that perfect batch!

• 4 lb. crystal malt
• 2 lb. golden syrup
• 2 lb. white sugar
• 5 oz. hops
• level teaspoonful salt
• ¼ oz. citric acid – yeast – nutrient

Bring seven quarts water to 150°F. Pour this into polythene pail and add the malts at once. Put in immersion heater, cover with polythene and wrap vessel in a blanket to conserve warmth. Switch on heater and keep the wort at 145°-150°F for seven – eight hours. At this stage you may try the starch test if you want to.

Strain into boiler and add three ounces of hops and the salt. Bring to boil for five minutes and then simmer gently for forty minutes. Add remaining hops and simmer for a further ten minutes. Put sugar, syrup and acid into the fermenting vessel and strain the mash on to it, stirring thoroughly until all sugar is dissolved. Make up to four gallons with boiling water, cover with sheet polythene and leave to cool to 65°-70°f. Then add yeast and nutrient. Cover as directed and leave in warm place for seven-eight days.

If using hydrometer, take readings after six days until 1.005 is recorded and then bottle as already directed. If hydrometer is not being used, let the beer ferment on until it goes ‘flat’ and then prime – add sugar to recommence fermentation – and then bottle. If a draught bitter is required – most bitters are of the draught variety – merely allow the beer to continue fermenting until it has gone ‘flat’ and then bottle.

May be used after ten days in bottle, but is better after three weeks.

• 2½ lb. dried light malt extract – 4 oz. hops
• 2 lb. demerara or other brown sugar
• 2 pints strong freshly made tea
• level teaspoonful citric acid
• level teaspoonful salt – yeast – nutrient

Use four teaspoonfuls tea and allow to stand for five minutes.

Boil hops and salt in about a quart of water for fifteen minutes. Take out bag, squeeze when cool enough and pour hop-water into fermenting vessel. Add strained tea, malt, sugar and citric acid and make up to two gallons with boiling water. Stir well to ensure malts and sugar are dissolved and allow to cool to 65°F -70°F. Then add yeast and nutrient. Cover as directed and leave to ferment in warm place for seven-eight days. If using hydrometer, take readings after six days until 1.005 is recorded and then bottle. If hydrometer is not in use, allow fermentation to go on until beer goes ‘flat’ and then prime – add sugar to recommence fermentation as; directed – and then bottle. If draught beer of this, sort is required, merely allow fermentation to go on until beer goes ‘flat’ and then bottle.